EFFECTS OF DIFFERENT FOOTWEAR ON VERTICAL JUMP AND LANDING PARAMETERS JOE W. LAPORTA,LEE E. BROWN,JARED W. COBURN,ANDREW J. GALPIN,JAMES J. TUFANO, VANESSA L. CAZAS, AND JEREMY G. TAN Human Performance Laboratory and Center for Sport Performance, Department of Kinesiology, California State University, Fullerton, Californian ABSTRACT LaPorta, JW, Brown, LE, Coburn, JW, Galpin, AJ, Tufano, JJ, Cazas, VL, and Tan, JG. Effects of different footwear on vertical jump and landing parameters. J Strength Cond Res 27(3): 733– 737, 2013—Little is known about the effects of different footwear on anaerobic performance variables. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of different footwear on vertical jumping and landing parameters. Ten men and 10 women par- ticipated. After a dynamic warm-up, subjects performed a vertical jump (VJ), depth drop (DD), and Bosco test on a force plate in 3 different conditions, on 3 separate days: bare feet (BF), minimalist footwear (MF), and tennis shoes (TS). Bare feet had greater relative peak power (relPP) in the VJ (men: BF, 59.87 6 5.09 W$kg 21 ; MF, 58.39 6 5.69 W$kg 21 ; TS, 57.70 6 6.54 W$kg 21 ; women: BF, 45.26 6 4.10 W$kg 21 ; MF, 45.06 6 3.53 W$kg 21 ; TS, 44.77 6 4.55 W$kg 21 ), while for men, jump height (JH) was also greater in BF and MF (BF, 44.5 6 4.46 cm; MF, 43.47 6 5.5 cm; TS, 41.47 6 14.45 cm). Results of the Bosco test revealed average relPP was greatest in BF compared with MF and TS (men: BF, 19.70 6 3.01 W$kg 21 ; MF, 19.28 6 3.00 W$kg 21 ; TS, 18.93 6 3.33 W$kg 21 ; women: BF, 14.68 6 1.41 W$kg 21 ; MF, 13.97 6 1.56 W$kg 21 ; TS 13.62 6 1.67 W$kg 21 ), while for JH, BF and MF were greater than TS (men: BF, 28.62 6 5.0 cm; MF, 27.78 6 5.09 cm; TS, 26.54 6 5.1 cm; women: BF, 18.60 6 1.97 cm; MF, 17.86 6 6.35 cm; TS, 17.35 6 2.47 cm). No differences in relative impact force were seen during the DD between condi- tions. Therefore, athletes and coaches interested in enhancing single and multiple VJs might consider either BF or minimalist shoes. KEY WORDS power, impact, force INTRODUCTION M any believe that a return to a more primitive or naturalistic condition is paramount for opti- mal health. The previous research regarding this topic has been focused on the type of footwear worn; specifically, the effect footwear has on endur- ance running (2,5–7,11,14,18). It has been speculated that the arch support and cushion that a shoe provides may inhibit any positive adaptations relating to shock absorption and produce an unnatural foot motion. The result of this is an improved performance with a lower risk of injury (11,15,18). Numerous studies have assessed barefoot and minimalist footwear (MF) conditions on running and walking performance (2,5,6,11,14,16,18). It is still not definitive if there are significant jumping performance differences between traditional tennis shoes (TS), bare feet (BF), or MF (4,13,14,21). This question has been assessed through ground reaction forces (11,12,14,20), 3-dimentional motion capture, joint positioning, kinetics, and kinematics (2,7,19,20). With much of the current research focusing on variables related to running, there are very few studies that have investigated plyometric or ballistic movements (1,5,8,21). Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of different footwear on jumping and landing parameters in men and women. METHODS Experimental Approach to the Problem This study was a repeated measures design with each subject performing single vertical jumps (VJs), multiple VJs (Bosco), and depth drops (DDs) in 3 different conditions (BF, TS, and MF). The order of conditions was random- ized and differences between conditions and sex were determined. Subjects Ten men (age, 22.4 6 2.24 years; height, 175 6 6.67 cm; mass, 73.74 6 6.67 kg) and 10 women (age, 22.6 6 2.06 years; height, 164.5 6 5.27 cm; mass, 62.68 6 4.61 kg) volunteered to par- ticipate. Participants were selected using convenience sampling. Inclusion criteria were healthy, recreationally trained individuals with a jumping background, with no current lower body Address correspondence to Lee E. Brown, leebrown@fullerton.edu. 27(3)/733–737 Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research Ó 2013 National Strength and Conditioning Association VOLUME 27 | NUMBER 3 | MARCH 2013 | 733 Copyright © National Strength and Conditioning Association Unauthorized reproduction of this article is prohibited.